


Future Fish: Bar and Nightclub

by PShakkah



Category: Free!
Genre: Anxiety, Depression, M/M, Stripper AU, like it's a stripper au, stripper!Makoto, theres gonna be naughty stuff, this is gonna get raunchy at some point
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-27
Updated: 2014-09-27
Packaged: 2018-02-18 23:22:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2365778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PShakkah/pseuds/PShakkah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Haru’s parents had decided he would no longer live with them, it didn’t bother him. When they left him alone after his grandma died, he wasn’t angry at them. When they picked his fiance, he didn’t say a word. After all, Haruka Nanase never intended on falling in love. Not with a man, and definitely not with a green eyed stripper.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Future Fish: Bar and Nightclub

The frigid winter air crept into the blankets, stirring the man within them. Haruka groaned and let his mind wander before the alarm went off. He left the phone to vibrate for a few more seconds before a shaky arm left the warmth of the blanket to grab the irritating thing off of the night stand. Once the alarm was silent, his surroundings started falling into place. He rose up and looked out at his view of the city. Even though the sun had not yet risen, the artificial lighting was enough to highlight the silhouette of his country’s capital.

 

Tokyo was huge and at the same time compact. Too many people in one location. It was much more fast pace than Haruka was used to back home in his small fishing town. Before he let his mind wander any longer, he forced himself into the kitchen where he started to lazily wash some rice. If he forgot breakfast, class would be even harder to get through.

 

One of his culinary professors was especially strict about snacking while cooking. It made sense for sanitary reasons but it was still tiring to fight hunger. Once the rice cooker started, cold feet guided the man to his bathroom where he promptly filled the tub. The stinging chill from tile under his toes made him all the more eager to submerge himself in the warmth of the bath’s embrace. The warm steam rising from the water pulled him in. Clothing was strewn about before dropping himself into the heat. The tension from cold left his body all at once and a huge sigh caused bubbles to race to the surface.

 

Haruka Nanase was a 26 year old student who spent too long doing nothing before being forced to “just pick something.” His parents shoved a catalog of classes in his hand. They pulled some strings and got him admittance into the school. All he had to do was choose his major. He should be grateful. His parents cared enough for their son to make sure he didn’t continue to just float through life doing nothing in particular.

 

Deep down Haruka knew it was so they didn’t have to explain to people that their son was depressed and not doing anything with his life. Pretending that wasn't the case hurt less. They had given up on him doing anything academic when he barely passed high school.

 

After giving the catalog a cursory glance, he settled on culinary. Being in a kitchen was comfortable and he did enjoy the creative side of cooking. The school even had a swim team. He didn’t see himself trying out for it though. The guy was a few years past his prime to compete professionally anyways. It didn’t really matter.

 

His friend Rin had tried to convince Haruka to talk to the scouts pestering him about his future back in high school, but on the big day he had an anxiety attack and was disqualified for touching the bottom of the pool. He didn’t do too well under pressure and just like that, the only option he saw possible for himself disappeared.

 

The shrill sound that came from the kitchen alerted him that the rice was ready. Reluctantly, he managed to get out of the tub to swaddle himself into a towel. The cold floor made him shudder and was relieved to finally see the sun starting to turn the sky a less daunting shade of grey. It would probably snow today. He shut off the rice cooker and took out a can of mackerel to top his rice. The meal was quickly consumed before it could succumb to the temperature of his apartment.

 

****

 

“What do you mean you can’t go out? Sousuke told me to take a rest day and you know I don’t get a lot of those right?”

 

Haruka groaned. Rin was persistent if nothing else. Even through the _phone_ his intensity was as vibrant as the guy's red hair. Once he sunk his jaws into an idea he was like an alligator or something. He would lock and refuse to let go. “I didn’t say we couldn’t hang out. I just don’t want to go anywhere.”

 

“Well that’s... lazy.” Irritation clear in his voice before continuing. “I’m not gonna be in Tokyo forever. Let’s do something exciting! I have to go back to Australia in a few months. We could like, hit a bar or something." Bars. Noisy, dirty bars. "Friend to friend, I think you could stand getting laid.”

 

Haruka sputtered for a good minute before finding the right way to respond to something like that. It wasn’t that he couldn’t get a date, he just never really cared for the people around him in a sexual or even romantic way. The few times he did it was eyes wandering over male swimmers. That wasn’t weird, right?

 

Deep down he knew he probably preferred the wrong thing so he buried the thoughts deep inside. There was so much going on in his head that he didn’t take much notice of his surrounding in the first place. And anyways...

 

“You know my parents wouldn’t like that very much.”

 

“Why do your parents matter? Aren’t they in America or something?”

 

Did he ever tell Rin? There wasn’t really a good time... “You know I have a fiance, right? For almost a year now.”

 

...

 

There was way too big of a pause before Haru heard distant yelling and what must have been Rin throwing the phone.

 

Then a low voice was heard. “Rin, what the hell is wrong with you? Calm down!”

 

“Shut up, Sousuke! This fucker never told me he was engaged!”

 

“Wait what? Haru?”

 

When the talking became distant and stopped, Haru quickly pulled the phone away from his face and hung up before Rin could yell at him directly.

 

The screen lit up and displayed the time. Haruka rushed off to his next class, realizing he had been distracted a bit too long. Before he got to class, he made sure to send a quick text to Rin saying he was going to be busy just in case decided to call for a follow up. He shuddered at the thought.

 

The lecture was boring and was almost relieved when he felt a single vibration in his pocket. He pulled the phone into his lap to look over the text message.

 

_**Rin** : Dropped the phone. I was just kind of SHOCKED I GUESS. You’re getting married??? WTF, DUDE?!_

_**Haruka** : its not like we fell in love or anything. shes just this girl my parents picked out. she comes from a good family or something. i think its for business._

_**Rin** : And you’re okay with that? When’s the wedding?_

_**Haru** : june. and i honestly dont care all that much. they were really happy about telling me. she seems nice i guess._

_**Rin** : Well at least you’ll be taken care of._

 

Haruka’s lips pressed into a thin line. He had taken care of himself basically his whole life. It just now dawned on him that he would be sharing it with someone else. Would he really though? How quick would it be before she realized he was too distant and unfeeling?

 

His thoughts caused his pulse to quicken. If she wanted a divorce, would his parents forgive him? After everything they’d done just so he could have a future? His life had been nothing but a downwards spiral after his grandma died. Could they take anymore disappointment from their only son?

 

A short buzz interrupted his terrifying thought process.

 

_**Rin** : Can I at least throw you a little bachelor party?_

_**Haru** : where?_

_**Rin** : Work._

 

****

 

The disgustingly bright neon sign made Haruka cringe. The sign read “Future Fish” in bright pink with a little crudely drawn fish in the corner. It would have been cute had it not been for the fact that the place was a strip club.

 

“Rin, why are we at your gay strip club?” If he was blunt, maybe Rin would realize that this was a stupid idea.

 

“It’s a male strip club. The dancers are guys. That doesn’t mean it’s all only _gay_ guys-”

 

Rin was actually defending the place. “When you said work, I thought you meant a pool.”

 

“Too bad, merman. We’re going inside and you’re getting a bachelor party.” Truth be told, the most Rin wanted from this was to get a reaction out of Haruka. He missed how his friend used to be when he swam in races and showed any kind of passion or emotion at all really. At the moment, he seemed very passionate about not touching the place with a twenty foot pole. “Haru. I was gonna surprise you but it’s got hot tubs for VIP guests and I could... pull a few strings.”

 

“G-strings?” Haruka inwardly laughed at his own joke but was completely deadpan to everyone around him. Realizing Rin wasn’t laughing, he continued. “You’re a star stripper, right?”

 

Rin clenched his teeth but made himself calm down. “First of all, that joke was terrible. Secondly I only do this gig like, twice a week but the staff is really nice and you should let loose and have a good time.” The fact that Haruka attempted to joke showed that he was at least letting loose a bit. Rin smiled at that knowledge.

 

Before the black haired man could even think of some kind of argument, a frigid winter wind made him lose focus on everything but getting somewhere warm... Like a hot tub.

 

****

 

Upon entering, Sousuke ran up with a smile and greeted them. “I can’t believe Rin actually got you to come.”

 

Haruka could barely hear the tall man through the music. It was so loud that he could have sworn each beat blurred his vision. Rin made his way up to Sousuke and they bumped fists. “Of course I got him to come. We’re taking one of the hot tubs tonight. You can join us if you want.”

 

Sousuke laughed. “You know how big future Friday is.” The word future immediately brought Star Trek uniforms and laser guns to mind.

 

Where the hell was he...?

 

Sousuke finished. “So as much as I would _love_ to take a bath with you and your boyfriend, I’m actually on shift tonight.”

 

Haruka looked at the two. They were always bullying each other. It happened so often that it just became the way they spoke. The two were so close it was ridiculous. Rin always stayed with Sousuke when it was off training season. Partly due to the fact that Sousuke who was working towards being a fitness coach would keep the guy in shape even during the harshness of winter.

 

Rin finally asked, “On stage or back stage?”

 

“Back stage. Sasabe’s parents were visiting and he can’t exactly say he works for a strip club so...” Haruka sighed in relief. He wasn’t sure how awkward it would have been if he had to face Sousuke after seeing him doing... whatever it was

 

“Huh. Then who’s doing the cop act tonight?” Rin chuckled.

 

“Well, the only costumes were for the sharks and you bailed. Ama-chan didn’t appreciate that very much so...they’re just making the crime act longer.”

 

Haruka’s curiosity finally started to get the best of him. “Sharks?”

 

The red head quickly looked over and shot him a quick answer. “Me and Sousuke. I’ll explain when we get to the hot tub.” How looked back at Sousuke. “Is there one open tonight?”

 

“Well yeah...”

 

“Okay. We’ll take it then.”

 

“It’s in the splash zone.”

 

****

 

After changing into the swimsuit Rin had allowed him to borrow, he made his way over to a sign that said splash zone. He quickly found Rin and submerged himself into the warmth of the tub. It wasn’t as hot as hot tubs normally are. Probably so someone could stay in them longer than 20 minutes.

 

Upon surfacing, he realized that he was incredibly close to the stage. The show had not yet started. His mind would have started wandering had it not been for Rin explaining a bit about the club.

 

“So to stick with the whole ‘fish’ theme, our manager makes everyone’s strip name revolve around some kind of sea creature.”

 

“Of course you’re a shark then...”

 

Rin flashed his toothy smile. “Don’t be jealous, Haru. We can’t all have the sex appeal of an apex predator.”

 

Blue eyes widened and eyebrows raised at the accusation. “Yes. I always fantasize about sharks ripping me apart with their _pointy ass teeth._ ”

 

The response was a scowl. “Sorry, Haru. I only eat paying customers.”

 

The imagery was a bit much for him to handle so he ended up splashing his friend in disgust. “I don’t wanna hear about your sex life, Jaws.”

 

“Whoa. I said nothing about sex! And I have to play up the whole predator thing on stage. It’s part of being a ‘great white.’” He must have realized how cheesy that sentence sounded because he blushed lightly when Haruka made a face.

 

Rin looked over his shoulder to see Sousuke directing the waiters.

 

“Sousuke over there is a whale shark. Generally the ‘whales’ are large and muscular and sharks are leaner. The baby face ones are usually birds that live by the water...” He was rambling and Haruka began to tune him out. “...It’s a gimmick but Ama-chan can market this stuff like crazy.”

 

Haruka couldn’t believe how much Rin was talking about this. This was much more elaborate than he thought it would be. He knew that this strip club paid well based on what Rin had told him. It was also well maintained and Rin had told him that they regularly clean the water. The thought of people ‘soiling’ the water made the man sick to his stomach.

 

As his gaze traveled up from the water, it landed on the bright yellow and black striping along the edge of the hot tub. “What does splash zone mean, exactly...?”

 

Rin looked over at him and chuckled. “You’ll find out.”

 

****

 

“Ladies and gentlemen.” Haruka immediately recognized the deep voice as Sousuke’s. “Thank you all for coming out tonight. Sorry for making you wait but usually to see the doctor, you need to make an appointment...”

 

On cue, a pink haired man clad in a doctor’s outfit was illuminated by a spotlight. The beat started and Haruka was going to have a pounding headache by the time he left. At least he didn’t have school the next day. He could sleep it off and Rin would finally leave him alone for a bit.

 

The performer made his way to the pole in the center of the catwalk and allowed his jacket to begin sliding off as he swung circles around it. He blew a kiss to a girl and tossed his jacket to her, causing several cheers and screams of encouragement from the audience. The dancer was clad in nothing but pants and a tie. When his hand reached up to start loosening the latter, he made it a point to roll his hips in hypnotizing circles. He thrusted his hips enough to begin loosening his pants with the rhythm.

 

The noise increased exponentially when the pants came off to reveal nothing but a speedo. Pieces started falling into place when the tall man lowered himself into one of the hot tubs. A hot tub lined with yellow and black stripes.

 

“Rin...? _Why is it called the splash zone?_ ”

 

Rin stated in the flattest voice he could “Cause you’re gonna get wet.” Haruka’s face must have changed several colors before meeting his eyes with a dissatisfied frown.

 

“I am not interested in getting a lapdance-” Before he could finish, Rin shoved a couple of bills into his hand.

 

“Just try to have a little fun. No judging from me.” A devilish grin broke out across his face. “I’m gonna get a set of drinks for us.”

 

The dancer was in a woman’s lap, gently stroking her face, he turned to look at Haruka. A purple eyed wink was directed at him but he made it a point to show no interest in return. The guy seemed annoying as hell. Though it would be a lie to say that the performers didn’t look to be in perfect shape.

 

He assumed this was partly Sousuke’s doing. Rin had told him that Sousuke gets paid to come up with diet plans and workout regimens for each dancer. The results of studying fitness clearly showed.

 

****

 

After a few acts, Haruka slowly realized that “Future Friday” referred to career options rather than sci fi. It seemed like a much more lucrative way to go about it than a futuristic theme. After all, there are so many career based fetishes, they could never really run out of ideas.

 

Several shots later (mostly due to Rin challenging Haruka’s alcohol tolerance), Haru began to feel less wound up and even started having some fun. Not necessarily from the dancers but the hot tub was nice and drunk Rin was always fun to watch.

 

Rin got a lap dance from an all too eager silver haired boy in a burglar outfit who he called Ai and Haruka almost got a lap dance before dismissing himself to the bathroom. Nothing like the bathroom to make someone realize how drunk they are. Damn it, Rin.

 

On the way back to the hot tub, Sousuke’s voice traveled through the speakers. “We have one more act for you all tonight. He’s on call and on fire! Here’s our Orca!”

 

Even though the lights were off, the crowd was screaming louder than any other act and this one hadn’t even started yet.

 

The music started slowly leading in with a guitar and dim lights only showed off the silhouette of a very built body. A t-shirt loosely clung to his frame but he slowly peeled it off as the music got louder and the lights gave more visibility.

 

Haruka had never seen a more amazing set of back muscles in any of his years swimming. His mouth opened slightly when the spotlight fully revealed the fireman. The hat in his free hand found its way onto his head and he turned around to face the ravaging eyes of the audience. Smudges of what was supposed to be soot clung all over his greased body.

 

The hips of the performer began to swing like a pendulum as he began to make his way to the center of the stage. All the while, lights reflected off of his body to frame his rippling muscles and chiseled core.

 

Nothing on this man’s body looked out of place. A well timed body roll against the pole in front of him sent the crowd into a frenzy. He bit his bottom lip and looked up towards Haruka. His heart stopped when their eyes met. Green round eyes cut through every colored light that shone on his face.

 

A face like that didn’t belong in this setting. This face looked soft; precious like something that needed to be protected. This was nothing like attraction he’d experienced before. The dancer glanced at the money in Haruka’s hand and a mischievous look took over the previously innocent expression.

 

The man made his way over to their hot tub on all fours before climbing in and standing in front of him, hand ghosting over his own belt. The tell tale rattling of the belt could be heard but Haruka’s gaze remained on his face.

 

The stripper was trying very hard to get this boy aroused but much to his dismay, he had been convinced that the young man in front of him was not in a sober state of mind to contribute to his revenue goal of the night. He started to worry about his health actually.

 

Without breaking character, the green eyed man lowered himself to the other. “You okay, lovely?” To his relief, the man under him finally opened his mouth to speak.

 

“Your face is so...” a single exhale carried the last word. “ _beautiful_.”

 

The performer noticed nothing sexual about his expression. He just looked... awed. _This wasn’t normal._

 

Then the spell broke. Just like that. An incredible shade of red took over the dancer’s entire face all the way up to his ears and stuttered for several minutes before tipping backwards and falling completely into the tub. “W-W-What are you-”

 

Rin’s laughing fell on deaf ears. The pounding in Haruka’s chest was louder than the music had been the entire night. The person in front of him had the cutest expression he had ever seen. He looked embarrassed and confused but even emotions like that looked perfect on his face.

 

A rush took hold of his entire body and he leaned towards the tantalizing green gaze that kept luring him in.

 

“I just really-” Haru fell into the water before he was able to finish. Water had never failed him. Why now? Why here?

 

“Whoa, Haru. I think you had a bit much to drink...” Rin scooped his friend up and made him sit on the edge of the tub. “Sorry, Man... Haru isn’t like this... ever.”

 

“Oh... Hi, Rin.” The man coughed awkwardly and looked up at the stage. “I sh-should probably go to the other VIPs before Yamazaki gets mad...”

 

Rin gave him a knowing nod and a smile. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve gotta take this guy home anyways.”

 

“Okay. See you Monday, then.” He removed his completely soaked pants, grabbed his hat and heaved himself up toward the pole on the platform.

 

Though he had managed to regain most of his stage presence, Haruka couldn’t help but notice that his ears were still bright red at the tips. It was endearing in a way. The green eyes did not find their way back to his own.

 

Why was he so sad about it?

 

****

 

“Yo, Haru? Are you okay?”

 

Snapping back to reality, Haruka realized he was being carried with a jacket loosely wrapped around him. He wasn’t wearing his swimsuit anymore. when did he change...? Of course it was Rin. Next to both of them was Sousuke.

 

“Nanase, make sure you drink a lot of water when you get home. Also, sleep on your side in case you throw up. You drank way too much. It’s detrimental to your health and when you drink, it makes Rin want to out drink you so then I have to deal with two-”

 

“Jeeze, Sousuke. Give him a break. It was his unofficial bachelor party.” The two bickering turned into white noise as Haruka got lost in his thoughts.

 

That’s right. He was engaged. What would his family think if he had been seen at a male strip club getting drunk and trying to get a dancer’s attention?

 

Memories of the man flooded his brain. The presences of an innocent beauty and an unbelievable sex appeal existing in the same person seemed impossible. He had never been so compelled to just.. _. touch someone_. He couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that this person existed. If this was what attraction was, he wanted no part of it. What would people think? What could he do? He was definitely pulled in by a man. A shirtless, greased, dirt covered _man._

 

Fuck.

  
This thought process was not going to be any easier when he sobered up in the morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Wow that chapter was much longer than I thought it would be. Please let me know what you think!
> 
> Also, the song I listened to during Makoto's dance was Secret by Miyavi. Listen for the full effect, I guess.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyHrOHQoNBs
> 
> I might do side pairings in the future. I'm personally always torn between Sourin and Nitorin.


End file.
